


This Is The Way The World Ends; With Zombies Breaking Down The Back Door

by Oreocat155338



Category: Avatar: The Last Airbender
Genre: Angst, No Uncle (as of yet) sorry, On the Run, Other, Zombie AU, seriously, technically, that no one asked for
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2020-08-24
Updated: 2020-12-30
Packaged: 2021-03-07 02:27:33
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Major Character Death
Chapters: 3
Words: 2,410
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26079481
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oreocat155338/pseuds/Oreocat155338
Summary: Each of the Four Nations has their own way of dealing with the dead.The Fire Nation burned theirs. The Earth Kingdom placed theirs in catacombs or buried them, depending on whether you lived in a city or not.The Northern Water Tribe put theirs on boats and sent them out to sea before using waterbending to trap the dead in ice, deep underwater. The Southern Water Tribes would release them far into the frozen wasteland and set a group of hunters on them as a food source.The Air Nomads- depending on the Temple, either trapped the dead to allow the animals to eat them, or put them in coffins secured to a cliffside.Really, they shouldn't have been surprised when it backfired.And you never knew what it would take to kill them.
Comments: 6
Kudos: 34





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> The Water Tribes grew up in the ice and cold, and even being frozen could only hold their dead for so long. And of course, the Earth Kingdom's dead could dig their way out of the ground, given time.  
> The Air Nomads thought that should the dead escape their coffins, they would fall to their deaths, but they've always lived far from solid ground, and their dead survived, before eventually finding their way to those entrusted with holding the dead while the animals ate them. It was a gruesome death.  
> The Fire Nation lasted the longest, but when the dead started needing hotter and hotter temperatures to burn-  
> Well. It was only a matter of time. Soon, Benders and non-benders alike are scattered throughout the nations, avoiding the dead as best they could, because-  
> You never knew what it would take to kill them.

If it hadn't been for their bison, the Air Nomads would've been decimated.

  
As it was, they'd been caught off guard, and a good number of them had been killed and eaten.

Aang was one of the 'lucky ones', he supposed. He'd managed to escape-

But it'd cost Gyatso his life.

And Aang didn't know where to go.

He just picked a direction and had Appa fly.

He had a Flying Lemur who'd gotten onto Appa in the chaos that he needed to name, at some point but-

But now he pulled his knees to his chest, fighting to keep his tears in-

He hated that he hadn't been able to help Gyatso. He'd been useless!

He hadn't really earned his tattoos. He was still just a kid.

And he'd lost the only adult that he'd truly cared about.

***

When the dead had attacked in force, Hakoda had told his tribe to scatter while he and the other warriors fought them back.

It had happened before, and they'd managed to drive them back. When they did, the men would follow the tracks and bring their families back to their village.

Katara and Sokka were furious that they weren't fighting. His daughter was a capable waterbender who'd been trained both in healing and fighting, while Sokka was a good fighter with his boomerang and his club-

But they were young still, and he didn't want them to witness the reckless abandon and furiosity that the dead attacked with.

He didn't want them to see the gruesome deaths that would, inevitably, come from this attack. 

And, in the end, he is glad his children aren't here when he's just a second too slow, and the teeth bite into his throat.

***

The Beifongs had only the best guarding their house. They were of the mindset that should the dead escape their graves, they would be ready.

Even then, it is only thanks to Toph that Gaoling survived the onslaught.

Her parents were among the survivors, and while they hated the idea that Toph was so good-

There was no longer any other option but to accept her strength. They decide to flee to Ba Sing Se, with Toph as their only means of protection-

And so the entire town packs up their belongings and they begin the long trip to safety.

***

Kyoshi Island was one of the few places that didn't have an overabundance of the dead. Suki was glad of this because it meant that Kyoshi Warriors could defend their village easily.

It doesn't take long to figure out the trick to putting down the dead again- for good this time.

And as the Kyoshi Warriors begin the process of hunting down the dead roaming their island, they teach everyone else on the island, fighter or not.

After all, this might be the difference between a loved one returning home or not.

***

Zuko is a Prince, this means that he is directly responsible for his people.

When one of his father's generals had dismissed the first few deaths caused by the dead - calling those who'd died "weak and unfit to live in the Fire Nation"-

Zuko had spoken up, defending his people. As a prince ought to.

He'd been challenged to an Agni Kai, where he'd come face to face with his own father. When he'd refused to fight, his father had burned his face to the point where even the palace healers weren't sure if he'd survive.

Against the odds, he'd survived. Sure, he could only really see out of one eye, but he was alive.

Then he'd been banished, given a crew to get him out of the Fire Nation and told not to return until he figured out how to "properly deal with the dead" (which had, apparently, become an issue as he'd healed).

He'd been dropped off in the Earth Kingdom before the ship returned to the Fire Nation. All troops had been recalled to fight the newest threat.

And just like that, Zuko was alone, with nothing but a bag of food, his dao swords, the clothes on his back-

And an impossible mission.


	2. Chapter 2

By the time Aang's had the chance to calm down, the air had gotten chilly. It took merely a second to have Appa fly closer to the water below him.

  
He had no idea where they were but Appa was content to fly a while longer while Aang decided what they should do now.

They couldn't return to the Southern Air Temple, that much was clear. It'd been overrun and the Air Nomads weren't prepared for a fight.

But for now...

"You need a name." Aang looked at the lemur who'd hitched a ride with them, who was munching on a fruit. "How about..." He recognized the fruit, and a small grin appeared on his face. "How about Momo."

The lemur's ears perked up, and wide eyes looked back at him, waiting. Aang's grin widened. "Momo it is then." He turned back forwards, frowning at the ice that he saw them coming upon. He glanced back at Momo. "Enjoy, Momo." Momo took that as permission, and went back to eating as Aang turned back forwards.

"What do we do now, Appa?" He asked without expecting an answer. He sighed. "I suppose we'll need to find civilization at some point-" He stopped, seeing two figures in the distance. "Appa-"

Appa was changing direction before Aang had finished his sentence, but Aang had opened his glider. "I won't be far buddy."

With that, he took off, flying towards the figures faster than Appa-

They'd stopped, and Aang really hoped they weren't more of the dead.

But he was flying into the wind-

"Something had to have happened to them, Sokka!" Came a female voice, and Aang's grin reappeared, and something like hope kindled in his chest. "Otherwise they'd have come for us by now!"

"Maybe- maybe they just can't find us!" The other - Sokka - argued. "We should go back and check!"

"Check what?" Aang asked as he closed his glider, dropping to meet them.

As he landed, water gripped his ankles, holding him in place as the two stepped back, taking fighting positions.

"Whoa, whoa!" He held his hands up in what he hoped would be a placating manner to them. "I'm not- I'm not one of the dead! I'm an Airbender, and my name is Aang."

They stared at him for a few second, then Appa landed, letting out a roar-

And the water released him as their eyes went wide, the girl taking another step back.

"Katara-" Sokka's fearful expression was replaced by a grin.

"I know." She frowned, before she spoke again."Would you be willing to give us a lift back to our village? It would be safer-"

"Yeah." Aang said. "But you'd have to guide Appa, I've no idea where we are." She nodded, and Aang hopped up onto Appa, waiting patiently while they tried to figure out how to get up.

Katara wound up lifting herself up on water, and picking up Sokka to drop him aboard the bison.

Then she moved up to beside Aang to give him directions.

***

It took longer than she'd thought to get back - she and Sokka had gone further from the village than they'd expected.

But when she saw it, she simply pointed, and Aang landed their ride in the just outside the village, and followed them in.

"Sokka, Katara!" Gran-Gran as a huge grin on her face. "It's good to see the both of you! When they lost the trail we thought the worst!"

It took no effort to run to Gran-Gran and hug her, burying her face in her coat. When another set of arms wrapped around the both of them, Katara knew Sokka had joined the hug.

After a few minutes of catch-up - mostly explaining who Aang was and why he'd followed them - she asked, "Gran-Gran, where is dad?"

Everyone's face fell, and Katara looked at them desperately. "No, no he has to be fine-"

"I saw it." The warrior was bandaged up, but they could recognize Bato in a heartbeat. "He was knocked off-balance and before he could recover one of those things was one him. By the time I got there he was already dead."

Her face crumpled, and she dropped to her knees as she began sobbing.

And Sokka, despite looking like he wanted to join her, held back his sobs, allowing the tears to fall as he held her.

"I'm sorry." He kept whispering as their family and friends gathered around them, giving them gentle hugs and whispering their condolences-

And that was when Sokka couldn't hold his grief in anymore.


	3. Chapter 3

Toph allowed her parents to have the other Earthbenders on the outside of their party for protection.

  
Nevermind that she would know when the dead were coming long before anyone else.

Still, they would be safe once they reached Ba Sing Se, her parents claimed. So they went.

When she could escape her parents side, she spent her time with the other Earthbenders, talking about technique.

What she had learned from the Badger Moles was very different from how they'd been taught, and she appreciated the perspective.

And they pushed on until Toph could sense the city-

"It's packed full of people." Her voice is hushed, and her father turned to her.

"I don't see how you would be able to tell." His voice is harsh, but there is a stutter of fear in his heart. He doesn't entirely believe that she can't. "We will be safe here. I can-"

"You can guarantee we'll be safe?" Toph kept her voice low. "With the amount of people there? If the Dai Lee miss one-"

"Then you will catch them before they get to us." Her father's voice is firm, and his heart is steady- 

A _belief_ in her power, but Toph doesn't know how to say that even with her power, she can only stop so many.

This is more than she can handle, but she will protect her friends.

"How about we talk about putting Gaoling in the Outer Ring?" She asked. "The other Earthbenders and I can make an underground city that they can exit and then tend the crops?"

"And us?" Her mother is quiet. "You would have us like underground?"

It would make Toph feel better, but she'd already known her parents wouldn't agree. "We can be in Ba Sing Se proper." She answered. "This will keep them safer, and give me less to defend should something go wrong. It'll allow me to focus my attention on you both." It seemed to satisify them, and they set about figuring out how to sell it to the rest of their town.

And she sat back and let them do the work while she tried to figure out what their underground town would look like.

Her parents were Baifongs, they would get their way.

***

Zuko had gotten extraordinarily lucky to get directions to Ba Sing Se, and he knew it. There weren't many people living out in the country - the Earth Kingdom had been hit hard when the dead rose, given that they didn't burn their dead.

And so he went, avoiding the dead while keeping his Dao ready in case bandits came after him.

Not that there were many of those around, but he was ready either way.

When he finally arrives, it's difficult to get in but-

He manages to convince them that he had fled home and was just seeking peace.

He hopes the legendary library of Ba Sing Se had something on how to put down the dead.

"I thought they were gonna call you out for lying." A voice says beside him, and it takes all Zuko's self-control to keep himself from jumping and drawing his blades on-

On a girl.

"What do you mean?" Zuko asked, staring at her, angry that she'd scome up on his blind side without a word.

"And you're angry." She sighed. "I can sense your heart rate. So I know you're lying, your name isn't 'Lee' and you're not here for the reasons you say you are." She paused. "Still, I think you might be of some use to me."

"You're- you're blackmailing me?" She wasn't even a teenager yet, that much was clear. Still-

"You can see." She told him plainly, and Zuko found himself looking at her gray eyes- 

A blind child was blackmailing him. "And?" He asked harshly.

"Simple. If the Dai Lee miss one, they'll be everywhere." She replied. "In a city as populated as this, how could they not? If that happens, I need to protect my family."

"And what makes you think I can help?" Zuko asked, his only eyebrow raised. This was... Interesting.

"I heard people mentioning that with that burn you can't be able to see out of that eye." Was her answer. "If you were able to make it to Ba Sing Se, you must be able to fight."

"With my dao swords." Zuko acknowledged. She tilted her head.

"They said it looks like a handprint." She continued. "Your burn, I mean. So I know you aren't from the Earth Kingdom because if it is shaped like a hand..." She trailed off, and Zuko sighed.

"Say I help you." He said. "What's in it for me?"

"Other than keeping your secret?" She was treading on dangerous ground with him again, and she knew it. "I'm the Beifong heir. If you say you're doing business for me, no one will question your odd coming and goings."

"Will I be staying with you?" Zuko asked, an idea forming-

If what she said was true, then this could get him into the library. He could find the solution.

"Yes." She said. "Me and my parents. You'll be in another room, obviously. If you would be willing to help train our new guards then they should be able to fight long enough for my parents to escape should the worst occur."

"So you don't expect me to stay forever." Zuko noted. "Alright, as long as once I've found what I need, I can leave."

"I'll figure out what you're looking for before then." She challenged. "And I'll figure out where you'll be going."

"Bet." Zuko replied, and she grinned. "We have a deal, I'll help you. My name is Zuko."

"Toph Beifong." Her grin had a hint of mischief in it. "I think we'll be good friends, Zuko."


End file.
